Fangless: The Alpha's Vampire Mate
Chapter 179: Bad Guys Incoming

Chapter 179: Bad Guys Incoming

Zane, a Beta and elder among the werewolves, had assumed the highest leadership in Wintertooth during Thorin and Puck’s absence.

Sure, he could pass the responsibility to Charna, who’d held the fort when the trio had run off to the Kingdom of Eira, but that would be irresponsible. Thorin had entrusted Wintertooth to him, and he wouldn’t fail that trust.

As he entered the courtyard, the werewolves of Wintertooth parted, making way for him. A group of very large, very angry-looking werewolves stood waiting for him, practically oozing ’bad guy’ energy.

Zane didn’t need a neon sign to figure out who the villains were. It was always easy to tell who the troublemakers were.

"State your purpose!" Zane’s voice rang with authority.

Charna, Trudy, and Morgan hovered off to the side, exchanging glances that screamed, This is gonna be a disaster, while preparing for the inevitable chaos.

Then, Barmin, one of Zacharia’s underlings, stepped forward. "We come in peace," he said, his voice calm but calculated. "We’re only here for the vampires. Once we have them, we’ll leave Wintertooth untouched."

Zane raised an eyebrow. Yeah, right. He wasn’t buying that for a second. Everyone knew Nina Zacharia’s idea of ’peace’ was never genuine.

And his suspicions were not totally unfounded. In fact, while Nina had indeed told Barmin to get the vampires, she’d also given him a nice little side quest: destroy Wintertooth.

And apparently, Barmin thought the best strategy was to not mention the whole annihilation thing right away. If they made their move too soon, the vampires could slip away in the chaos. Better to play the waiting game.

There was no way Zane was about to hand over Riona and Florian to the Zachs—not after Thorin had finally gotten his feelings reciprocated. The guy had spent ages pining, and now that something was actually happening, Zane wasn’t about to let it all fall apart.

Did these idiots even know how painful it had been to watch Thorin deny his feelings? Zane and Puck had practically been pulling their hair out while Thorin played the ’I’m totally not in love’ game, when it was as obvious as a full moon.

Before Zane could respond, Trudy beat him to it. "You’ve gotta be kidding," she snapped, her loyalty to Riona flaring up. "Do you really think we’re just going to hand them over to you? What, you think we’re that dumb?"

Barmin was uninterested in engaging with Trudy as he looked at her like she was a buzzing fly. Instead, he zeroed in on Zane.

"Zane, aren’t you supposed to be the elder here? The voice of wisdom?" His tone was dripping with fake politeness. "I mean, how much lower can we sink as a society if werewolves start playing with vampires?"

The tension was so thick you could cut it with a knife, and neither side looked ready to back down. A clash seemed inevitable. Everyone stood on edge, eyes darting to catch the first hint of a move.

And then, because the universe loves bad timing, a familiar, irritating voice broke through the stillness. "Why are we even doing this?"

Zane’s brow twitched as he turned to see Vesper sauntering through the crowd like he owned the place. Of course, it was Vesper.

Thorin must’ve had two very specific reasons for not kicking this guy out of Wintertooth yet: one, he was probably too busy being blissfully wrapped up in his vampire romance to care. And two, Vesper was so insignificant he likely didn’t even register on Thorin’s radar.

Vesper strutted up to Barmin with a picture of misguided confidence and stretched to awkwardly slap a hand on Barmin’s shoulder. It was an effort—the guy was way too short to pull off anything resembling casual.

"Don’t worry, comrades," Vesper said with a grin, completely oblivious to the palpable tension. "He’s a friend of mine."

The silence that followed could’ve frozen lava. Charna groaned and immediately hid her face in her palm, unable to watch. Trudy shook her head slowly like she was witnessing a werewolf jumping down the abyss in slow motion. Morgan seemed to be the only one still holding out hope.

It was almost comical how Vesper genuinely believed the Zachs’ underlings had shown up for him—like they were here to endorse his laughable claim to be the next Alpha, replacing the current, obviously more handsome and far more competent one.

Barmin looked down at Vesper, unimpressed, and swatted his hand away with the same enthusiasm one might reserve for a fly.

Vesper’s face turned an unfortunate shade of red as his arm flailed awkwardly in the air before he quickly tucked it behind his back, as though hoping no one noticed.

"Hand over the vampires," Barmin growled, his patience wearing thin—no doubt thanks to Vesper’s unwelcome attempt at buddying up.

"I will not," Zane said, already stepping into a fighting stance, every muscle coiled and ready.

But Vesper, oblivious as ever, stepped in front of Barmin, holding his arms out like some self-appointed peacemaker. "Whoa, whoa, whoa. Let me talk to him, okay? I’m sure the Zachs don’t mean any harm."

The tension in the air was lost on Vesper, who turned to Barmin with a ridiculous air of authority.

"Look, I know Nina Zacharia can be, uh, prickly. But if you just tell her I’m handling this, she’ll totally back off." He spoke as if that was the final word, looking unbearably smug like he had just saved the day with his brilliant diplomacy.

For a moment, Vesper stood there, beaming, convinced he’d solved the problem. But then reality hit—hard.

Barmin’s icy glare didn’t waver as Vesper took a step toward Zane. Without warning, his arm shot out like a wrecking ball, catching Vesper square in the left shoulder and sending him flying into the nearest bushes. Vesper crashed through the leaves with a pitiful thud.

That, apparently, was the first move.

Zane sprang into action, launching the first attack, and the rest of Wintertooth’s pack followed suit.

Both sides clashed like thunder, each werewolf using familiar tactics, though the Zachs’ side was more coordinated, more methodical. Wintertooth’s wolves fought with raw instinct, while the Zachs moved like they were executing some twisted, rehearsed choreography.

Amid the chaos, exactly what Barmin had feared came to pass—a vampire slipped away. Florian stood in the shadow of his doorway, listening to the distant sounds of the battle as the road ahead emptied.

He glanced up. The sun was blazing overhead—not the most convenient time for a vampire to make a run for it. But this was his shot, and he wasn’t about to let it pass.

With Riona still locked away, Florian made his move. He shifted into bat form, easily slipping out of the crystal handcuffs that had been holding him, and soared out of Wintertooth undetected.

I didn’t stay because I couldn’t escape, Florian thought as the sunlight seared his skin. I stayed because I loved you too much to leave while you were watching.

The burning rays intensified as Florian climbed higher into the sky, but he pushed through, wings beating harder with every second that brought him closer to freedom.

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